Sponsoring My Wife

[birdwings25]

   Hi,

   I am residing in Canada, and will start the application to sponsor my wife, in Lebanon, very soon. Please advise:

   - Is it OK for me to translate her documents from arabic to English in Canada, or does it have to be done overseas, in the home country?

   - My religious/legal marriage happened in my absence, back home. I have known my fiance/wife for a while, however. Will that hurt the application?

   - How long is it taking these days in damascus to process the application, on average? Are most applications approved without an interview?

   - A technical question: how do you change the font size on these application forms, or make them accept arabic letters?

   - Do you include documents like pics, e-mails, and the likes?

   Thanks.

[stealth]

If you can I would suggest getting the documents translated over their. They may have to go to a place in the government that will stamp them saying that these papers are in fact legal and from the government of Lebanon.

I don't think you can change the font size.

Yes include the additional documents.

I highly suggest reading the application guide. I thought I could do it without it, but made the decision to look over it and found some stuff that i missed.

[ariell]

   

   - My religious/legal marriage happened in my absence, back home. I have known my fiance/wife for a while, however. Will that hurt the application?

What do you mean your marriage took place in your absence? Did you have a proxy marriage (i.e. the marriage took place in Lebanon and you appointed someone -- a proxy -- to represent you at the marriage in your absence)? If that is the case, then you DO NOT have a legally valid marriage for immigration purposes. Proxy marriages are NOT valid anywhere in Canada.

Or did you have a telephone marriage? That IS a valid marriage in Canada provided that a telephone marriage is legal in Lebanon.

You need to sort this issue out first. If you don't have a legal marriage, you cannot proceed with the rest of your application. Your application will be rejected. Please see pg 24 and 37 of the OP 2 manual. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/manuals/op/op02-eng.pdf


EDIT: Sorry, just to clarify. If you get married by proxy IN Canada, it is not a valid marrriage as proxy marriages are not legal here. If you get married by proxy in another country and a proxy marriage is considered a legal valid marriage in that country then your marriage is a legal marriage for CIC purposes also. Sorry for the confusion.

[birdwings25]

Thanks for your feedback. Let me clarify that I (the husband) is the one who gave the 'power of attorney' to a family member to perform this (and other paperwork) on my behalf, because I cannot be physically present in Lebanon at the time, and after I & my spouse knew each other for close to two years.

I looked at p.37 you mentioned, and it says the following:
Proxy Marriage (p.37) : At a proxy marriage one of the participants is not present and has named a proxy to represent him or her. If the law of the country in which the marriage ceremony was performed permits proxy marriages, they are legal marriages
for immigration purposes, provided they are legal under Canadian federal law. See definition of “marriage” above and also Section 5.27 above.

I checked section 5.27 and those requirement are satisfied (for any marriage in Lebanon, for that matter).

[AMB]

I agree with ariell- you really need to read through the guide.

It doesn't matter where the translations are done, as long as they are completed and stamped by someone with the authority to do these translations.  They should attach a letter with their credentials or association membership number.

Apparently, 80% of applications to Damascus are completed in 6 months (this is assuming everything is "in order" in the application). 

You cannot change the font size in the applications online.  If something doesn't fit, print it with that part blank and just write it in.

OF COURSE you need proof of your relationship like photos, email and more (copies of plane tickets, passport stamps, evidence of trips etc.).  Just read the sponsored person's questionnaire, and the sponsor's questionnaire and you'll easily see what you need to include.

[birdwings25]

Thanks to all useful tips.

Just for the general benefit of forum users, I made a very brief call to CIC earlier this morning and got the following feedback:

   - If the marriage is recognized in the country where its performed then its acceptable for immigration purposes. That was in response to the query mentioned above.

   - It does not matter where the translation is done, if its done correctly (but note that some documents from Lebanon, for example, require certification by lebanese authorities, ...etc)